Chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday accused the Narendra Modi government of resorting to deception (chholona) by luring Matuas with the citizenship offer for electoral gain.
“You are all citizens of India. Unless you are a citizen, how could you obtain an Aadhaar, PAN, or Swasthya sathi…how could you get rations? This is (citizenship offer) an act of deception by the BJP. Don’t be trapped…,” she said.
She reiterated that every Matua and Bangladeshi refugee was an Indian citizen, while at the same time, demanding that district magistrates be empowered to issue citizenship certificates, a system that was earlier in vogue.
Mamata raised the issue while speaking at a workshop of Trinamul Congress workers in Chakla, North 24-Parganas. In the district, Matua community members are expected to play a decisive role in the Bongaon and, to some extent, Barasat Lok Sabha seats.
In 2019, Trinamul lost in Bongaon in North 24-Parganas and adjacent Ranaghat seat in Nadia to the BJP with Matuas swaying in favour of the saffron candidates over the promise of citizenship.
Matuas’ inclination towards the BJP continued even in the 2021 Assembly polls, when Trinamul suffered a fresh setback losing four of the seven Assembly segments to the BJP in Bongaon and in all seven Assembly seats under the Matua-dominated Ranaghat parliamentary seat.
On Thursday, in an attempt to regain the support of the community, Mamata reiterated that her government would never allow the Centre to implement the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, and urged them to repose faith in her as she would ensure their “unconditional” citizenship.
Apprising party workers, who included a large number of Matuas, that the authority of issuing citizenship cards was once under the district magistrate, she demanded a reintroduction of the system.
“The district magistrates were empowered to issue the citizenship cards. But the Centre has robbed the power only for the sake of politics. Now, they are creating divisions,” she alleged. “Give the power to the district magistrates to issue the citizenship card…. who are you (BJP) to interfere?” she said.
Urging Matua members not to be “misled”, Mamata said her government had ensured land rights to the Bangladeshi refugees who came to India up to 1971.
“We have given you a permanent address and reiterate our assurance to protect your right…But do not misunderstand us,” she said.
After winning a second term entrusted in 2019, the Narendra Modi-led Union government introduced the contentious Citizenship Amendment Act and the Matuas thought that their problems would now be solved forever. Things, however, have changed in the last four years as the Hindu refugees from Bangladesh await the implementation of the CAA, but there is no clarity on when it will be implemented.
The uncertainty over the CAA’s future, combined with the continuous efforts of the Trinamul Congress and other political parties to call the BJP’s apparent bluff has worked to a certain extent, and ahead of the Lok Sabha poll, the Matuas seem to be a divided house.
While one group has proximity to the BJP, the other owes allegiance to the Trinamul. With legal provisions not framed so far, the Matuas have become restlessness and anxious, questioning the BJP’s intention.
To exploit the situation, the pro-Trinamul faction of All India Matua Mahasangha, headed by Mamatabala Thakur, organised a rally in Calcutta on Thursday to reiterate their demand for “unconditional” citizenship.
The organization demanded the immediate withdrawal of all the riders from the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) to ensure unconditional citizenship for all the Matuas.
Speaking at a huge gathering at Esplanade the former Trinamul Congress MP from Bongaon said: “Everyone Matua is a citizen of the country…No one should play with our rights. We will go to Delhi and stage a hunger strike.”
The organization stressed the demand for a specific document to ensure unconditional citizenship rights with a cut-off date of December 31, 2019, for eligibility for citizenship.
Joint Secretary of the organization Prasenjit Biswas said, “BJP raises the issue of citizenship before the election for sake of votes…But citizenship in real terms remained elusive. We urged BJP leaders to stop cheating Matuas this time.”